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Most Ardently Yours
Not yet published
Expected 7 Jul 26From USA Today Bestselling author Freya Sampson comes a swoon-worthy, laugh-out-loud romance inspired by Jane Austen's beloved Pride and Prejudice that begs the question: what if your book boyfriend jumped from the pages of their story and into your life?
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single woman in possession of many romance novels, must be in want of a book boyfriend."
Zoe Knight, a struggling romance writer, has sworn off men for good. At least…the ones in real life. Once a believer in a happily ever after, she now curbs her loneliness with the help of the best book boyfriends in literature – and there is no better man than Jane Austen's Mr. Darcy. So when she stumbles into a classic London bookshop and argues with the annoyingly attractive store owner, Nick, who refuses to sell romance novels, she decides to liberate him of a dusty copy of Pride & Prejudice abandoned on a top shelf.
But this is no ordinary book.
After reading from the pages, Zoe finds herself in a remarkable situation: she has accidentally summoned the Mr. Darcy to the real world. Now, she's face-to-face with the man she's loved forever, and he's everything she dreamed he would be. Handsome? Check. Brooding? Check. Talks like he swallowed a thesaurus? Check and check. But even in all his regency perfection, can he ever be as good as in the novel? And if he's here, in her London apartment trying to figure out how to work a shower , what will happen to the literary world he came from? With Nick—the last man she could ever be prevailed upon to work with—urging her to send the fictional Darcy back to his own story, Zoe will have to decide what she really wants from a happy ending, before it's too late.
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single woman in possession of many romance novels, must be in want of a book boyfriend."
Zoe Knight, a struggling romance writer, has sworn off men for good. At least…the ones in real life. Once a believer in a happily ever after, she now curbs her loneliness with the help of the best book boyfriends in literature – and there is no better man than Jane Austen's Mr. Darcy. So when she stumbles into a classic London bookshop and argues with the annoyingly attractive store owner, Nick, who refuses to sell romance novels, she decides to liberate him of a dusty copy of Pride & Prejudice abandoned on a top shelf.
But this is no ordinary book.
After reading from the pages, Zoe finds herself in a remarkable situation: she has accidentally summoned the Mr. Darcy to the real world. Now, she's face-to-face with the man she's loved forever, and he's everything she dreamed he would be. Handsome? Check. Brooding? Check. Talks like he swallowed a thesaurus? Check and check. But even in all his regency perfection, can he ever be as good as in the novel? And if he's here, in her London apartment trying to figure out how to work a shower , what will happen to the literary world he came from? With Nick—the last man she could ever be prevailed upon to work with—urging her to send the fictional Darcy back to his own story, Zoe will have to decide what she really wants from a happy ending, before it's too late.
320 pages, Paperback
Expected publication July 7, 2026
11 people are currently reading
9862 people want to read
About the author
Freya Sampson
7 books1,603 followersFreya Sampson is the USA Today bestselling author of The Last Chance Library and The Lost Ticket/The Girl on the 88 Bus. She studied history at Cambridge University and worked in television as an executive producer, making documentaries about everything from the British royal family to neighbours from hell. She lives in London with her husband, children and cats. Nosy Neighbours is her third novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
January 20, 2026
Freya Sampson just gave us a charming, heart‑warming rom‑com with characters who feel real and good banter. A soft, wholesome slow burn — perfect for romance readers who can definitely, at least once, had the same desire of materialising their favourite book boyfriend into reality 😅
This is a story that slowly warms you from the inside out.
While the first half leans gentle and steady, the action really picks up around the 70% mark, and that’s when I got completely hooked. This is why the book gets 4 ⭐ from my side - I wasn’t hooked from the beginning but it really grew on me and definitely the last 30% of the book won me over.
The writing is easy to follow, the supporting characters are greatly built and add a lot to the charm and wit of the story (Mrs Atallah being my favourite ❤️).
Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
This is a story that slowly warms you from the inside out.
While the first half leans gentle and steady, the action really picks up around the 70% mark, and that’s when I got completely hooked. This is why the book gets 4 ⭐ from my side - I wasn’t hooked from the beginning but it really grew on me and definitely the last 30% of the book won me over.
The writing is easy to follow, the supporting characters are greatly built and add a lot to the charm and wit of the story (Mrs Atallah being my favourite ❤️).
Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
March 17, 2026
As someone who has enjoyed Freya Sampson’s other work and always eagerly anticipates her upcoming books, I am sad to say that this book fell flat for me.
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
The premise of the book is cute: our beloved Mr. Darcy shows up in the real modern world! I was excited to see how he would navigate his surroundings while figuring out (with the help of the protagonist) how to get back to his own world in Pride and Prejudice.
But, unfortunately, the pacing of the book dragged on for too long. While this is a rom-com/magical realism book, it was riddled with plot holes and unrealistic plot lines.
Let’s start with how the FMC managed to get Mr. Darcy out of the Pride and Prejudice book and into the real world. By the end of the book, there still isn’t any clear-cut explanation of how she managed to do it. The MMC (who is NOT Mr. Darcy, just to be clear — the MMC is a bookstore owner) tells her that his female relatives were the only people to ever bring fictional characters into life — their powers skipped him because apparently only his female relatives have these magical abilities. No mention of witchcraft, no mention of other magical powers. Just the power of summoning fictional characters into real life without any explanation other than, “If someone has a specific problem they need help with, then my relatives magically will the characters out of the book and into that person’s life to help them resolve their issues.”
How did his relatives get these powers? What other things do they do? How is it that these are the only powers they seemingly have and nothing else? And is it only hereditary? Do other people have these powers? If it’s hereditary through the female bloodline, why does the FMC have these powers, then?
At the end of the book, the MMC suggests (per his mom’s theory) that the FMC must have summoned Mr. Darcy because she was totally in love with the MMC and therefore was able to “read Mr. Darcy out of the book.” The FMC then suggests that maybe she managed to summon Mr. Darcy so he could teach her that she didn’t need to have a romantic relationship with anyone in order to fulfill her life (or something like that — I still don’t get the whole reasoning behind it, to be honest). This still doesn’t explain how the MMC’s mom and relatives gained their own powers and what other things they can do so I’m still scratching my head over that.
The MMC also lets the FMC know that the reason their family secret (summoning characters out of books) never got out beyond the bookstore was because “readers are trusted to not leak the secret so they didn’t say anything.” Which makes no sense because we can’t just blindly trust strangers to not gossip about unusual things like summoning fictional characters out of books.
Then let’s get to Mr. Darcy. The beauty of Mr. Darcy (in my opinion) in Pride and Prejudice is that he’s this gruff, arrogant, yet sweet character, who stays quiet and observant throughout Jane Austen’s book and has a good head on his shoulders. Unfortunately, this book doesn’t really pay homage to his original characterization in Pride and Prejudice. I understand that he was set into a new world and was unsteady on his feet, but their interactions throughout the story were not anything like I understood Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s original work.
The plot also takes a sharp turn 60-70% into the book, when I thought the plot was close to resolved. (By this point, Mr. Darcy is already back in Pride and Prejudice.) Suddenly, the FMC got stuck in Mr. Darcy’s world where she meets the MMC’s mom (who is revealed to have been stuck there for years). Again, there’s no real explanation as to how she got into the book other than “she wished to visit Mr. Darcy in Netherfield.”
Then the MMC got sucked into their world to try to get both of them back out into their real world — by getting his nearly-dying aunt to somehow magically will him into it. How does a nearly-dying woman who is in hospice manage to do that? And again: How did the FMC gain these powers to begin with?? We then see the FMC will herself out of the Pride and Prejudice book but, for some reason, couldn’t get the MMC out, which there is no explanation for. This added plot line ended up dragging out the pacing for me, and by that time, I was checking how long it would take to finish the book.
The relationship between the FMC and MMC was unfortunately not very well flushed-out. Her scenes with Mr. Darcy and her confused feelings for him were so dragged out that they took place of all interactions she could’ve had with the MMC. We start with her and the MMC’s “meet-cute” (and I say this loosely) where she ends up hating him for no reason other than he doesn’t stock romance books in his bookstore. Then there are more scenes where she mistreats the MMC, and suddenly they have the hots for each other, while he helps her get Mr. Darcy back into the book, and then they get sucked into P&P where they make out. In other words, it was whiplash. I was baffled and had no idea when exactly they fell in love.
Overall, I do appreciate that the author attempted a romantic comedy for the first time. Like I said, I adore all of her other books! My favorite ones, personally, were The Last Chance Library and Nosy Neighbors. Both books had such great characterizations and plots which I was hoping to see in this book. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get past the plot holes. I’d have to suspend my disbelief completely in order to enjoy it.
That being said, I look forward to reading more of her work in the future and seeing how she improves her writing in the romantic comedy genre.
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
The premise of the book is cute: our beloved Mr. Darcy shows up in the real modern world! I was excited to see how he would navigate his surroundings while figuring out (with the help of the protagonist) how to get back to his own world in Pride and Prejudice.
But, unfortunately, the pacing of the book dragged on for too long. While this is a rom-com/magical realism book, it was riddled with plot holes and unrealistic plot lines.
Let’s start with how the FMC managed to get Mr. Darcy out of the Pride and Prejudice book and into the real world. By the end of the book, there still isn’t any clear-cut explanation of how she managed to do it. The MMC (who is NOT Mr. Darcy, just to be clear — the MMC is a bookstore owner) tells her that his female relatives were the only people to ever bring fictional characters into life — their powers skipped him because apparently only his female relatives have these magical abilities. No mention of witchcraft, no mention of other magical powers. Just the power of summoning fictional characters into real life without any explanation other than, “If someone has a specific problem they need help with, then my relatives magically will the characters out of the book and into that person’s life to help them resolve their issues.”
How did his relatives get these powers? What other things do they do? How is it that these are the only powers they seemingly have and nothing else? And is it only hereditary? Do other people have these powers? If it’s hereditary through the female bloodline, why does the FMC have these powers, then?
At the end of the book, the MMC suggests (per his mom’s theory) that the FMC must have summoned Mr. Darcy because she was totally in love with the MMC and therefore was able to “read Mr. Darcy out of the book.” The FMC then suggests that maybe she managed to summon Mr. Darcy so he could teach her that she didn’t need to have a romantic relationship with anyone in order to fulfill her life (or something like that — I still don’t get the whole reasoning behind it, to be honest). This still doesn’t explain how the MMC’s mom and relatives gained their own powers and what other things they can do so I’m still scratching my head over that.
The MMC also lets the FMC know that the reason their family secret (summoning characters out of books) never got out beyond the bookstore was because “readers are trusted to not leak the secret so they didn’t say anything.” Which makes no sense because we can’t just blindly trust strangers to not gossip about unusual things like summoning fictional characters out of books.
Then let’s get to Mr. Darcy. The beauty of Mr. Darcy (in my opinion) in Pride and Prejudice is that he’s this gruff, arrogant, yet sweet character, who stays quiet and observant throughout Jane Austen’s book and has a good head on his shoulders. Unfortunately, this book doesn’t really pay homage to his original characterization in Pride and Prejudice. I understand that he was set into a new world and was unsteady on his feet, but their interactions throughout the story were not anything like I understood Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s original work.
The plot also takes a sharp turn 60-70% into the book, when I thought the plot was close to resolved. (By this point, Mr. Darcy is already back in Pride and Prejudice.) Suddenly, the FMC got stuck in Mr. Darcy’s world where she meets the MMC’s mom (who is revealed to have been stuck there for years). Again, there’s no real explanation as to how she got into the book other than “she wished to visit Mr. Darcy in Netherfield.”
Then the MMC got sucked into their world to try to get both of them back out into their real world — by getting his nearly-dying aunt to somehow magically will him into it. How does a nearly-dying woman who is in hospice manage to do that? And again: How did the FMC gain these powers to begin with?? We then see the FMC will herself out of the Pride and Prejudice book but, for some reason, couldn’t get the MMC out, which there is no explanation for. This added plot line ended up dragging out the pacing for me, and by that time, I was checking how long it would take to finish the book.
The relationship between the FMC and MMC was unfortunately not very well flushed-out. Her scenes with Mr. Darcy and her confused feelings for him were so dragged out that they took place of all interactions she could’ve had with the MMC. We start with her and the MMC’s “meet-cute” (and I say this loosely) where she ends up hating him for no reason other than he doesn’t stock romance books in his bookstore. Then there are more scenes where she mistreats the MMC, and suddenly they have the hots for each other, while he helps her get Mr. Darcy back into the book, and then they get sucked into P&P where they make out. In other words, it was whiplash. I was baffled and had no idea when exactly they fell in love.
Overall, I do appreciate that the author attempted a romantic comedy for the first time. Like I said, I adore all of her other books! My favorite ones, personally, were The Last Chance Library and Nosy Neighbors. Both books had such great characterizations and plots which I was hoping to see in this book. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get past the plot holes. I’d have to suspend my disbelief completely in order to enjoy it.
That being said, I look forward to reading more of her work in the future and seeing how she improves her writing in the romantic comedy genre.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson will be released in the United States on July 7, 2026.
Zoe Knight is not quite living her dream as an aspiring writer. She’s given up on writing her own romance novel, but she still devours romance books all the time, even if she doesn’t feel confident enough to write them any longer. As the book begins, her a-hole ex-boyfriend is being celebrated for writing a literary novel. She spends her days as a waitress at a Great Expectations-literary-themed café, until some excitement enters her life the day she steals a mysterious copy of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice from a grumpy bookstore owner named Nick (yes, he also happens to be hot with misguided taste in literature). Zoe has no clue why Nick even had one of the best romantic novels of all time at his bookstore, when he said he refuses to sell romances and doesn’t believe in happily ever afters…
A hint of literary magic is sprinkled over Zoe’s life after she reads aloud from Pride and Prejudice, magical edition, and the next day, a man who claims to be Fitzwilliam Darcy, dressed in full Regency-era clothing, shows up at the café where she works. Intending to take him to the hospital, instead she can’t resist spending some time with him. Lots of funny hijinks ensue, including Darcy’s love affair with reality television. It seems like Zoe is trying to fall in love with Darcy, her literary crush since she was a teenager, but she can’t stop thinking about Nick Baskerville of Baskerville Books.
Things get even crazier when Darcy realizes he’s not meant to be in contemporary London, and let’s just say Zoe and Nick will have to team up and figure out how to harness some literary magic through an unorthodox tour of Longbourn and Pemberley.
Mixed Reviews, Just Go For It
Some readers mentioned they were not fans of the third act, because there are some curveballs there, plot-wise, but I just went along with it and had fun without thinking too hard about plot holes or anything. You have to suspend some disbelief and just go with the flow and then you’ll enjoy the book all the way through.
Bookalikes
Most Ardently Yours is for Pride and Prejudice fans and romance readers who like books set in bookstores, as well those who enjoyed A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston and Austenland by Shannon Hale.
Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Zoe Knight is not quite living her dream as an aspiring writer. She’s given up on writing her own romance novel, but she still devours romance books all the time, even if she doesn’t feel confident enough to write them any longer. As the book begins, her a-hole ex-boyfriend is being celebrated for writing a literary novel. She spends her days as a waitress at a Great Expectations-literary-themed café, until some excitement enters her life the day she steals a mysterious copy of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice from a grumpy bookstore owner named Nick (yes, he also happens to be hot with misguided taste in literature). Zoe has no clue why Nick even had one of the best romantic novels of all time at his bookstore, when he said he refuses to sell romances and doesn’t believe in happily ever afters…
A hint of literary magic is sprinkled over Zoe’s life after she reads aloud from Pride and Prejudice, magical edition, and the next day, a man who claims to be Fitzwilliam Darcy, dressed in full Regency-era clothing, shows up at the café where she works. Intending to take him to the hospital, instead she can’t resist spending some time with him. Lots of funny hijinks ensue, including Darcy’s love affair with reality television. It seems like Zoe is trying to fall in love with Darcy, her literary crush since she was a teenager, but she can’t stop thinking about Nick Baskerville of Baskerville Books.
Things get even crazier when Darcy realizes he’s not meant to be in contemporary London, and let’s just say Zoe and Nick will have to team up and figure out how to harness some literary magic through an unorthodox tour of Longbourn and Pemberley.
Mixed Reviews, Just Go For It
Some readers mentioned they were not fans of the third act, because there are some curveballs there, plot-wise, but I just went along with it and had fun without thinking too hard about plot holes or anything. You have to suspend some disbelief and just go with the flow and then you’ll enjoy the book all the way through.
Bookalikes
Most Ardently Yours is for Pride and Prejudice fans and romance readers who like books set in bookstores, as well those who enjoyed A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston and Austenland by Shannon Hale.
Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Did not finish
January 25, 2026DNF at 22%
This had really cool potential but I actually strongly disliked this. Right off the bat I got the ick from the FMC at their meet-ugly when she goes into the MMCs bookstore after it’s closed, gets everything wet, basically calls him a loser for not liking all kinds of books (specifically romance) and then decides stealing from him is warranted. I couldn’t tell you of the couple had any chemistry or banter because for 22% that’s the only scene they have together. The FMC continues to be annoying and unlikable for the duration of the book that I made it through and the MMC is not featured again in that time , just Mr. Darcy. She initially thinks Mr Darcy is someone “having an episode” and decides taking him home with her is best for everyone (I DNF shortly after).
If pride and prejudice is your favorite book, this is probably right up your alley but there were just too many red flags for me to keep my interest.
Thank you to Netgalley and the author/publisher for an early copy of this book in exhange for an honest review. Sorry this wasn’t for me.
This had really cool potential but I actually strongly disliked this. Right off the bat I got the ick from the FMC at their meet-ugly when she goes into the MMCs bookstore after it’s closed, gets everything wet, basically calls him a loser for not liking all kinds of books (specifically romance) and then decides stealing from him is warranted. I couldn’t tell you of the couple had any chemistry or banter because for 22% that’s the only scene they have together. The FMC continues to be annoying and unlikable for the duration of the book that I made it through and the MMC is not featured again in that time , just Mr. Darcy. She initially thinks Mr Darcy is someone “having an episode” and decides taking him home with her is best for everyone (I DNF shortly after).
If pride and prejudice is your favorite book, this is probably right up your alley but there were just too many red flags for me to keep my interest.
Thank you to Netgalley and the author/publisher for an early copy of this book in exhange for an honest review. Sorry this wasn’t for me.
December 23, 2025
3.5⭐
Cute novel, where Fitzwilliam Darcy magically gets transported from book to real life. The plot is quite a bit more involved than that, and as is, this novel is good. Seeing as there is more than 6 months until publication, I'm hoping for some oomph to be added during editing. The writing is fine, the plot is fine, but there is repetition throughout which could be replaced with more detailed scenes, and injected with actual humour. There was a scene between Zoe and Nick which had them laughing until they wept tears, but was not even remotely funny for the reader. I think this book can be a Hallmark movie of the week, but would rather it be punched up to become a Netflix rom-com.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel.
Cute novel, where Fitzwilliam Darcy magically gets transported from book to real life. The plot is quite a bit more involved than that, and as is, this novel is good. Seeing as there is more than 6 months until publication, I'm hoping for some oomph to be added during editing. The writing is fine, the plot is fine, but there is repetition throughout which could be replaced with more detailed scenes, and injected with actual humour. There was a scene between Zoe and Nick which had them laughing until they wept tears, but was not even remotely funny for the reader. I think this book can be a Hallmark movie of the week, but would rather it be punched up to become a Netflix rom-com.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel.
February 20, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!
A charming, enchanting story of Mr. Darcy coming into reality. Zoe Knight is a woman down on her luck, stuck in her day-to-day routine while feeling lonely and isolated. After happening upon a male-dominated bookshop lacking in romance titles, she steals a copy of Pride and Prejudice and manages to bring Mr. Darcy into the present day in front of her. She grows attached to her long-time favorite “book boyfriend”, but soon realizes that keeping Mr. Darcy may wipe Pride and Prejudice off the face of the Earth. A story of finding yourself and knowing your self worth, this is definitely a delightful read, perfect for Jane Austen fans and romance aficionados.
A charming, enchanting story of Mr. Darcy coming into reality. Zoe Knight is a woman down on her luck, stuck in her day-to-day routine while feeling lonely and isolated. After happening upon a male-dominated bookshop lacking in romance titles, she steals a copy of Pride and Prejudice and manages to bring Mr. Darcy into the present day in front of her. She grows attached to her long-time favorite “book boyfriend”, but soon realizes that keeping Mr. Darcy may wipe Pride and Prejudice off the face of the Earth. A story of finding yourself and knowing your self worth, this is definitely a delightful read, perfect for Jane Austen fans and romance aficionados.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I applaud the quirkiness of the plot, yet that same quirkiness also makes the book feel a bit flimsy at times—and that’s coming from someone who loves both Austen and time-travel(-ish) romances.
Basic plot: The FMC is a hardcore romance reader. After a string of disappointing real-life experiences, she’s basically outsourced her love life to books. One day she wanders into a tiny bookshop run by a grumpy-but-hunky bookseller (yes, he’s the MMC) who pointedly refuses to stock romance. For reasons we learn later, the FMC finds an old, battered copy of Pride and Prejudice—and steals it. The next day, Fitzwilliam Darcy (the P&P MMC) appears in real life. The FMC tries to make Darcy her boyfriend (and, frankly, gaslights him), but after a few days
Don’t worry: the story does land on a happy ending (though it felt a bit… stretched).
YAY for
😊 The dynamic between the leads. The MMC is genuinely compelling: grumpy in a way that reads as layered rather than rude, and grounded enough to feel like a real person—not just a trope. His chemistry with the FMC carries a lot of the book. The FMC, on the other hand, reads a bit whiny to me at times, and her choices can be frustrating—but she still lands as “messy but readable,” especially because her emotional neediness fits the premise (someone who’s been living on fictional comfort for too long). When the two are on the page together, the story has its best moments.
😊 The initial magical realism twist. The “book character in real life” setup is clever, playful, and very on-theme for a romance that’s in conversation with Pride and Prejudice. The early sections are genuinely fun: the novelty, the wish-fulfillment, and the subtle tension of “this can’t possibly last” work really well. I also liked the hint of mystery around the bookshop and the late mother’s role—it adds texture beyond the central romance. It’s a strong hook… right up until the magic starts stacking new rules on top of old ones and the story pushes it a little too far.
NAY for
🤔 How Darcy is treated. And, like other reviewers, I struggled with the sexual aspect—it was a no for me. More broadly, I never quite saw him as a person in this story; he felt like a prop, “literally just a character.” Maybe that was intentional—to highlight the contrast between the MMC and Darcy—but I’m not convinced, especially because the main takeaway seems to be: FMC, you should be your own hero/savior. That’s fine, but I missed a clearer secondary message of: and choose someone who fits the real you, not just someone “perfect” in the abstract.
🤔 The magic logic eventually breaks. I can suspend disbelief once and accept the core premise. But when the plot escalates into characters jumping in and out of books, it lost me. At that point it felt more metaphorical than functional, and I disconnected. Magical realism works best (for me) when it stays simple—once it over-explains or over-expands, it risks snapping the reader out of the story.
🤔 It sometimes reads like fanfiction. There’s a level of fangirl energy that tipped into indulgent for my taste—and I say that as a fangirl.
My Bottom Line & Note for the Author
An enjoyable read with a charming premise and a strong romantic dynamic—but it could use a tighter hand to achieve that Ashley Poston–style sweet spot: whimsical magic grounded in real emotion, with cleaner narrative rules and a more seamless payoff.
----
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Basic plot: The FMC is a hardcore romance reader. After a string of disappointing real-life experiences, she’s basically outsourced her love life to books. One day she wanders into a tiny bookshop run by a grumpy-but-hunky bookseller (yes, he’s the MMC) who pointedly refuses to stock romance. For reasons we learn later, the FMC finds an old, battered copy of Pride and Prejudice—and steals it. The next day, Fitzwilliam Darcy (the P&P MMC) appears in real life. The FMC tries to make Darcy her boyfriend (and, frankly, gaslights him), but after a few days
Don’t worry: the story does land on a happy ending (though it felt a bit… stretched).
YAY for
😊 The dynamic between the leads. The MMC is genuinely compelling: grumpy in a way that reads as layered rather than rude, and grounded enough to feel like a real person—not just a trope. His chemistry with the FMC carries a lot of the book. The FMC, on the other hand, reads a bit whiny to me at times, and her choices can be frustrating—but she still lands as “messy but readable,” especially because her emotional neediness fits the premise (someone who’s been living on fictional comfort for too long). When the two are on the page together, the story has its best moments.
😊 The initial magical realism twist. The “book character in real life” setup is clever, playful, and very on-theme for a romance that’s in conversation with Pride and Prejudice. The early sections are genuinely fun: the novelty, the wish-fulfillment, and the subtle tension of “this can’t possibly last” work really well. I also liked the hint of mystery around the bookshop and the late mother’s role—it adds texture beyond the central romance. It’s a strong hook… right up until the magic starts stacking new rules on top of old ones and the story pushes it a little too far.
NAY for
🤔 How Darcy is treated. And, like other reviewers, I struggled with the sexual aspect—it was a no for me. More broadly, I never quite saw him as a person in this story; he felt like a prop, “literally just a character.” Maybe that was intentional—to highlight the contrast between the MMC and Darcy—but I’m not convinced, especially because the main takeaway seems to be: FMC, you should be your own hero/savior. That’s fine, but I missed a clearer secondary message of: and choose someone who fits the real you, not just someone “perfect” in the abstract.
🤔 The magic logic eventually breaks. I can suspend disbelief once and accept the core premise. But when the plot escalates into characters jumping in and out of books, it lost me. At that point it felt more metaphorical than functional, and I disconnected. Magical realism works best (for me) when it stays simple—once it over-explains or over-expands, it risks snapping the reader out of the story.
🤔 It sometimes reads like fanfiction. There’s a level of fangirl energy that tipped into indulgent for my taste—and I say that as a fangirl.
My Bottom Line & Note for the Author
An enjoyable read with a charming premise and a strong romantic dynamic—but it could use a tighter hand to achieve that Ashley Poston–style sweet spot: whimsical magic grounded in real emotion, with cleaner narrative rules and a more seamless payoff.
----
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:
💭Most Ardently Yours is the kind of book that feels like a warm hug and a very targeted love letter to romance readers—especially those of us who grew up worshipping Mr. Darcy and quietly measuring real men against fictional standards.
Zoe Knight is a struggling romance writer who has officially given up on men in real life. Fictional men, however? Thriving. She finds comfort, validation, and companionship in book boyfriends, with Darcy firmly reigning supreme. Romance novels are her safe place, her escape, her emotional support system—and honestly, same. So when fate (and an unforgiving London downpour) pushes her into Baskerville Books, a shop she’s avoided for years because it screams women not welcome, chaos ensues in the best way.
Baskerville Books is the embodiment of everything Zoe despises: male-centric displays, “serious” books by men for men, and zero romance in sight. Enter Nick Baskerville—the annoyingly attractive, painfully grumpy owner who proudly refuses to stock romance novels and somehow hasn’t read Austen (a crime, frankly). Their first interaction is pure gold: sharp banter, ideological clashes, bruised egos, and a very memorable argument involving Pride and Prejudice. The bookshop setting plus enemies-at-first-meeting energy? Delicious.
What really worked for me was how deeply this story gets romance readers. It explores how fictional men raise our standards, how women are judged for loving romance, and how books become lifelines during grief, loneliness, and heartbreak. Zoe’s backstory is heavy—losing her mother to cancer, her father to his own failures, and later her confidence to an emotionally destructive ex who crushed her writing dreams. Crispin Carter might genuinely be one of those characters you want to throw into the Thames. Watching Zoe reclaim her voice, her creativity, and her sense of self was incredibly satisfying.
The supporting cast adds so much heart. Bianca, her lifelong best friend, is pure found-family comfort. Mrs. Atallah, Zoe’s flat owner, quietly steals the show with her warmth and wisdom. Even the history of Baskerville Books—passed down through generations of book lovers—adds emotional depth and reinforces the idea that books save people.
And yes, the book is absolutely packed with literary references. Jane Austen fans, especially Pride and Prejudice devotees, will feel very seen. This novel leans hard into Austen parallels, Easter eggs, and thematic nods—it’s unapologetically indulgent. Fair warning: if you haven’t read Pride and Prejudice, this will spoil parts of it. If you have read it? You’ll probably be grinning the whole time.
That said, while I adored Zoe as a protagonist, the romance itself didn’t fully live up to its potential for me. Nick is charming in theory, and he does redeem himself, but the emotional build-up between him and Zoe felt rushed. Their first meeting crackled, but after that, I wanted more shared moments, more tension, more earned intimacy. The feelings seemed to jump ahead before I was fully convinced. A slower burn would’ve elevated this from great to unforgettable.
Still, this book was a joy to read. It’s light, visual, humorous, and genuinely uplifting. I flew through it in a day and felt good the entire time—which absolutely influenced my rating. It may not be extraordinary, but it speaks to things I deeply relate to: loving books fiercely, believing in fictional comfort, and learning that you don’t need a man (fictional or real) to save you—you can be your own hero.
Overall, Most Ardently Yours is a witty, comforting romcom that celebrates books, self-growth, friendship, and the magic of stories. It’s not perfect, but it’s charming, heartfelt, and written with so much love for readers like us.
✨Don’t read the blurb. Go in blind. Trust me.
𝐏.𝐒 That opening line alone deserves a standing ovation.
𝐏.𝐏.𝐒 Slightly generous rating, yes—but zero regrets. Books that make me feel seen earn bonus points.
🔸𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
🔸𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: Contemporary romance, Romantic fantasy
🔸I’d 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 this to -
📚 Romance reader girlies
📖 Jane Austen & Pride and Prejudice fans
💌 Anyone who has ever wanted a book boyfriend
☕ Book club readers looking for discussion-worthy themes
💭Most Ardently Yours is the kind of book that feels like a warm hug and a very targeted love letter to romance readers—especially those of us who grew up worshipping Mr. Darcy and quietly measuring real men against fictional standards.
Zoe Knight is a struggling romance writer who has officially given up on men in real life. Fictional men, however? Thriving. She finds comfort, validation, and companionship in book boyfriends, with Darcy firmly reigning supreme. Romance novels are her safe place, her escape, her emotional support system—and honestly, same. So when fate (and an unforgiving London downpour) pushes her into Baskerville Books, a shop she’s avoided for years because it screams women not welcome, chaos ensues in the best way.
Baskerville Books is the embodiment of everything Zoe despises: male-centric displays, “serious” books by men for men, and zero romance in sight. Enter Nick Baskerville—the annoyingly attractive, painfully grumpy owner who proudly refuses to stock romance novels and somehow hasn’t read Austen (a crime, frankly). Their first interaction is pure gold: sharp banter, ideological clashes, bruised egos, and a very memorable argument involving Pride and Prejudice. The bookshop setting plus enemies-at-first-meeting energy? Delicious.
What really worked for me was how deeply this story gets romance readers. It explores how fictional men raise our standards, how women are judged for loving romance, and how books become lifelines during grief, loneliness, and heartbreak. Zoe’s backstory is heavy—losing her mother to cancer, her father to his own failures, and later her confidence to an emotionally destructive ex who crushed her writing dreams. Crispin Carter might genuinely be one of those characters you want to throw into the Thames. Watching Zoe reclaim her voice, her creativity, and her sense of self was incredibly satisfying.
The supporting cast adds so much heart. Bianca, her lifelong best friend, is pure found-family comfort. Mrs. Atallah, Zoe’s flat owner, quietly steals the show with her warmth and wisdom. Even the history of Baskerville Books—passed down through generations of book lovers—adds emotional depth and reinforces the idea that books save people.
And yes, the book is absolutely packed with literary references. Jane Austen fans, especially Pride and Prejudice devotees, will feel very seen. This novel leans hard into Austen parallels, Easter eggs, and thematic nods—it’s unapologetically indulgent. Fair warning: if you haven’t read Pride and Prejudice, this will spoil parts of it. If you have read it? You’ll probably be grinning the whole time.
That said, while I adored Zoe as a protagonist, the romance itself didn’t fully live up to its potential for me. Nick is charming in theory, and he does redeem himself, but the emotional build-up between him and Zoe felt rushed. Their first meeting crackled, but after that, I wanted more shared moments, more tension, more earned intimacy. The feelings seemed to jump ahead before I was fully convinced. A slower burn would’ve elevated this from great to unforgettable.
Still, this book was a joy to read. It’s light, visual, humorous, and genuinely uplifting. I flew through it in a day and felt good the entire time—which absolutely influenced my rating. It may not be extraordinary, but it speaks to things I deeply relate to: loving books fiercely, believing in fictional comfort, and learning that you don’t need a man (fictional or real) to save you—you can be your own hero.
Overall, Most Ardently Yours is a witty, comforting romcom that celebrates books, self-growth, friendship, and the magic of stories. It’s not perfect, but it’s charming, heartfelt, and written with so much love for readers like us.
✨Don’t read the blurb. Go in blind. Trust me.
𝐏.𝐒 That opening line alone deserves a standing ovation.
𝐏.𝐏.𝐒 Slightly generous rating, yes—but zero regrets. Books that make me feel seen earn bonus points.
🔸𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
🔸𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: Contemporary romance, Romantic fantasy
🔸I’d 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 this to -
📚 Romance reader girlies
📖 Jane Austen & Pride and Prejudice fans
💌 Anyone who has ever wanted a book boyfriend
☕ Book club readers looking for discussion-worthy themes
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!
I love Jane Austen. I love Pride and Prejudice adaptations. And I have a real love of cringe regency in modern times stories like Lost in Austen and Austenland. So I'm really the ideal audience for this book. Those stories are silly and goofy and that’s what I expected from this.
I think in a film format, you can often forgive poor decisions of the protagonist because the experience with the story is short, but in book format, it feels much more grating.
This book could have been a novella. The protagonist goes completely against the obvious choices for progress for manufactured obstacles that feel dissatisfying and irritating. Even the initial premise of what are we doing?
There could have been a much better way to That would be way more fun because then it doesn’t make the character unlikeable, just a moron (affectionate).
Even the silliness with Darcy felt just… womp womp. Who would give bland toast Darcy chow mein and kimchi pancake? He’s going to have a heart attack from having well seasoned food for the first time in his life. Darcy felt very one note to me. I found it hard to engage, in a similar way I don't often enjoy fan fic, because the author sees the character in a different way to how I experienced them. If the protagonist is such a fan, the author almost does Darcy a disservice by making him so boring.
I have a personal gripe with ‘dating’ media. I don’t love pop culture references or trending phrases because it cements a story to that time and then once that time goes out of flavour, it makes the book cringe, which is unfair for a fun story, right? And I also dislike when pop culture references are so thrust upon you that you’re alienated from the story when you don’t know the reference.
Throwing in popular romance authors of this era, name dropping for the sake of name dropping. If I haven’t read every romance, romantasy, etc. author… then I don’t know what you’re talking about. So it’s a bit of a risk that you’re relying on your reader to already be so deep in the pocket of romance to be able to genuinely engage with those references. Maybe if I read more romance I wouldn't feel bothered by this but Romance was one of my top genres in 2025 so I find it difficult to believe that I haven't done enough work here.
Ultimately, if you want a good brain-off read, you’ll probably enjoy this. Especially if you're already a fan of goofy Austen in modern day stories. We're also nearly 6 months from the release of the story so there's a chance for them to tweak this a bit and give it the charm the book really deserves. As is, it's just not as for me as I wanted it to be.
I love Jane Austen. I love Pride and Prejudice adaptations. And I have a real love of cringe regency in modern times stories like Lost in Austen and Austenland. So I'm really the ideal audience for this book. Those stories are silly and goofy and that’s what I expected from this.
I think in a film format, you can often forgive poor decisions of the protagonist because the experience with the story is short, but in book format, it feels much more grating.
This book could have been a novella. The protagonist goes completely against the obvious choices for progress for manufactured obstacles that feel dissatisfying and irritating. Even the initial premise of what are we doing?
There could have been a much better way to That would be way more fun because then it doesn’t make the character unlikeable, just a moron (affectionate).
Even the silliness with Darcy felt just… womp womp. Who would give bland toast Darcy chow mein and kimchi pancake? He’s going to have a heart attack from having well seasoned food for the first time in his life. Darcy felt very one note to me. I found it hard to engage, in a similar way I don't often enjoy fan fic, because the author sees the character in a different way to how I experienced them. If the protagonist is such a fan, the author almost does Darcy a disservice by making him so boring.
I have a personal gripe with ‘dating’ media. I don’t love pop culture references or trending phrases because it cements a story to that time and then once that time goes out of flavour, it makes the book cringe, which is unfair for a fun story, right? And I also dislike when pop culture references are so thrust upon you that you’re alienated from the story when you don’t know the reference.
Throwing in popular romance authors of this era, name dropping for the sake of name dropping. If I haven’t read every romance, romantasy, etc. author… then I don’t know what you’re talking about. So it’s a bit of a risk that you’re relying on your reader to already be so deep in the pocket of romance to be able to genuinely engage with those references. Maybe if I read more romance I wouldn't feel bothered by this but Romance was one of my top genres in 2025 so I find it difficult to believe that I haven't done enough work here.
Ultimately, if you want a good brain-off read, you’ll probably enjoy this. Especially if you're already a fan of goofy Austen in modern day stories. We're also nearly 6 months from the release of the story so there's a chance for them to tweak this a bit and give it the charm the book really deserves. As is, it's just not as for me as I wanted it to be.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Rating: 1.5 stars
Contains adult language, suggestive material, LGBT side characters
I'll be honest. Despite my attempts to read every modern Jane Austen retelling known to man, I knew Most Ardently Yours might not be my cup of tea when I read the synopsis. I generally don't like Austen-inspired books involving time travel or regency characters, but we were celebrating 250 years of Jane Austen and the book was Read Now on Netgalley. Freya Sampson's book sounded like the kind of light, fun I needed to get through a rough year and reading slump, so I figured I'd give it a chance.
And unlike the beloved characters of Pride and Prejudice, I did my best to avoid either avarice and give Most Ardently Yours a fair shot. Unfortunately, the book quickly went from tolerable enough to tempt me to completely intolerable, and sadly, my good opinion once lost, is lost forever.
My main issue with Most Ardently Yours is that Freya Sampson spends the entire book trying too hard. Right off the bat, we get bombarded with so many references to romance books, I thought I was reading the captions of a BookTok post about some influencer's top 10 book boyfriends. I get that Freya Sampson loves romance, but the entire book felt like she was on her own personal crusade to defend the genre from literary snobs and misogynistic detractors. I don't necessarily have a problem with that, but if you're going to lecture your readers about something, do it by telling a good story. (And no, info dumping through your readers and trying to disguise it as "dialogue" doesn't count.)
What makes Jane Austen such a mainstay even two and a half centuries later is her clever wit and layered storytelling. She intrinsically trusts her readers to pick up on the subtlety and nuance in her stories, and it's clear from her works that writing and storytelling is a craft. With Most Ardently Yours it feels less like the work of a master craftsman and more like a toddler slapped some clay and paint together and call it a day. You might think I'm being unfairly harsh, trying to compare Freya Sampson to the literary genius of Jane Austen, but even when I compare her to her contemporaries, there's just unpolished and amateurish about her writing. I was trying to be generous and gave Sampson the benefit of the doubt, thinking she might be a debut author, but this is her fifth book. (Even if I try to be generous and take into account the quick turnaround time publishing seems to be pushing these days, surely an editor should've helped ensure Most Ardently Yours was in better shape.) The story is kind of bland, and the pacing is atrocious. I feel like my eyes glazed over a few times while reading, and I genuinely couldn't find any way to connect emotionally to the story despite the fact that Sampson (attempts to) deal with grief and loss. Honestly, Mrs. Atallah, the crotchety, meddling landlord, was the best part of the book.
Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an eARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Contains adult language, suggestive material, LGBT side characters
I'll be honest. Despite my attempts to read every modern Jane Austen retelling known to man, I knew Most Ardently Yours might not be my cup of tea when I read the synopsis. I generally don't like Austen-inspired books involving time travel or regency characters, but we were celebrating 250 years of Jane Austen and the book was Read Now on Netgalley. Freya Sampson's book sounded like the kind of light, fun I needed to get through a rough year and reading slump, so I figured I'd give it a chance.
And unlike the beloved characters of Pride and Prejudice, I did my best to avoid either avarice and give Most Ardently Yours a fair shot. Unfortunately, the book quickly went from tolerable enough to tempt me to completely intolerable, and sadly, my good opinion once lost, is lost forever.
My main issue with Most Ardently Yours is that Freya Sampson spends the entire book trying too hard. Right off the bat, we get bombarded with so many references to romance books, I thought I was reading the captions of a BookTok post about some influencer's top 10 book boyfriends. I get that Freya Sampson loves romance, but the entire book felt like she was on her own personal crusade to defend the genre from literary snobs and misogynistic detractors. I don't necessarily have a problem with that, but if you're going to lecture your readers about something, do it by telling a good story. (And no, info dumping through your readers and trying to disguise it as "dialogue" doesn't count.)
What makes Jane Austen such a mainstay even two and a half centuries later is her clever wit and layered storytelling. She intrinsically trusts her readers to pick up on the subtlety and nuance in her stories, and it's clear from her works that writing and storytelling is a craft. With Most Ardently Yours it feels less like the work of a master craftsman and more like a toddler slapped some clay and paint together and call it a day. You might think I'm being unfairly harsh, trying to compare Freya Sampson to the literary genius of Jane Austen, but even when I compare her to her contemporaries, there's just unpolished and amateurish about her writing. I was trying to be generous and gave Sampson the benefit of the doubt, thinking she might be a debut author, but this is her fifth book. (Even if I try to be generous and take into account the quick turnaround time publishing seems to be pushing these days, surely an editor should've helped ensure Most Ardently Yours was in better shape.) The story is kind of bland, and the pacing is atrocious. I feel like my eyes glazed over a few times while reading, and I genuinely couldn't find any way to connect emotionally to the story despite the fact that Sampson (attempts to) deal with grief and loss. Honestly, Mrs. Atallah, the crotchety, meddling landlord, was the best part of the book.
Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an eARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.25 Stars
Cute cover. Cute blurb. I was intrigued, even though I'm not the biggest fan of magical stuff in my books.
And I liked it. It was cute and funny and a bit sad and heartbreaking.
I liked the whole vibe of it all. The bookshop and London and the neighbor lady and the cat and the best friend. I liked the idea of your dream book boyfriend coming to life out of your favorite romance.
But it all needs a bit more. I need more funny moments. More falling in love moments. Just more moments in the bookstore with Ben. More action in the first half of the story. It's all very slow and a bit boring. Everything happens in the last third of the book.
I liked reading it, it was a cute romance... but it could've/should've been a really good story. I would still watch it on TV!
click ► HERE! to buy the book
Cute cover. Cute blurb. I was intrigued, even though I'm not the biggest fan of magical stuff in my books.
And I liked it. It was cute and funny and a bit sad and heartbreaking.
I liked the whole vibe of it all. The bookshop and London and the neighbor lady and the cat and the best friend. I liked the idea of your dream book boyfriend coming to life out of your favorite romance.
But it all needs a bit more. I need more funny moments. More falling in love moments. Just more moments in the bookstore with Ben. More action in the first half of the story. It's all very slow and a bit boring. Everything happens in the last third of the book.
I liked reading it, it was a cute romance... but it could've/should've been a really good story. I would still watch it on TV!
click ► HERE! to buy the book
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
While I quite enjoyed Freya Sampson's novel The Lost Ticket, I can't say the same about Most Ardently Yours. Premise-wise, I was on board; I'm a big fan of Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice in its various incarnations, so this should've been perfect. Unfortunately, this book wasn't my cup of tea.
Most notably, I did not jive with the narrative voice of this book: it was too of the moment. I get it--she was trying to place the character in the present and establish legitimacy within the contemporary romance genre; and the main setting here was a bookstore. However, even just the first few pages read like a list of BookTok's top authors and titles. I often have this issue with popular contemporary literature as these references will date the book to a specific moment in time and, thus, become stale and untimely soon. It's the equivalent of the awkwardness of the "how do you do fellow kids?" meme.
This initial vibe didn't bode well for the rest of the reading experience either.
I didn't care for the main character or her love interest. Their personalities somehow both bored and annoyed me at once, and I didn't enjoy following them through the story. It somehow felt juvenile and boring and I found it a slog to get through. Unfortunately, I also wasn't compelled by how the author described Mr. Darcy in this story and how he interacted with the main character.
Overall, I wasn't compelled by anything except the premise. If you're not picky and looking for a contemporary romance with references to P&P, I suppose this novel could suffice for a quick read. Unfortunately, I wasn't in the mood for a Hallmark Channel-level story and the contemporary references were too much for me to bear.
I'm truly sad because I've had pleasant experiences reading her other work but this one didn't work for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.
Most notably, I did not jive with the narrative voice of this book: it was too of the moment. I get it--she was trying to place the character in the present and establish legitimacy within the contemporary romance genre; and the main setting here was a bookstore. However, even just the first few pages read like a list of BookTok's top authors and titles. I often have this issue with popular contemporary literature as these references will date the book to a specific moment in time and, thus, become stale and untimely soon. It's the equivalent of the awkwardness of the "how do you do fellow kids?" meme.
This initial vibe didn't bode well for the rest of the reading experience either.
I didn't care for the main character or her love interest. Their personalities somehow both bored and annoyed me at once, and I didn't enjoy following them through the story. It somehow felt juvenile and boring and I found it a slog to get through. Unfortunately, I also wasn't compelled by how the author described Mr. Darcy in this story and how he interacted with the main character.
Overall, I wasn't compelled by anything except the premise. If you're not picky and looking for a contemporary romance with references to P&P, I suppose this novel could suffice for a quick read. Unfortunately, I wasn't in the mood for a Hallmark Channel-level story and the contemporary references were too much for me to bear.
I'm truly sad because I've had pleasant experiences reading her other work but this one didn't work for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Unfortunately, this one was a miss for me.
Normally a book that makes Mr. Darcy real, and mixes the charm of Pride & Prejudice with contemporary romance would be right up my alley, but I fear this one tried to do too much too quickly for it to work.
Right off the bat, we get Zoe - a snarky romance loving reader obsessed with fictional men, who marches into a bookstore that she realizes does not sell any romance and STEALS a book from there, after the store owner, Nick, claims he does not believe in the concept of romance novels. Soon after, she realizes she has somehow managed to bring Mr. Darcy out of her favorite Austen novel. Zoe essentially lies to this poor man for nearly two whole weeks, gaslights him into thinking he is stuck in the real world forever and is in fact a real person, and refuses to let him go until they realize her beloved novel is at risk of disappearing.
My other major concern with this book was how it started off as magical realism but warped into something else in the last 1/3rd. We had characters jumping in and out of books, very little to none explanation of how these powers had happened or how they would work in the future, and unfortunately for me, started reading like fan fiction as opposed to a romance novel. Mr. Darcy's personality is a tricky to get right in a contemporary novel in the first place; and the fact that we got 10x more of him than the actual male protagonist was criminal in itself, without his personality being watered down and the awkward physical intimacy scenes between him and Zoe.
Honestly, Zoe's quirky landlady, Mrs. Atallah was the saving grace for this book for me.
Overall, I'm thankful for the chance to read an advanced copy of this book and quite liked the British setting, but will probably cautiously give the author's future works a try someday.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the gifted eARC of this book! All opinions are my own.
Normally a book that makes Mr. Darcy real, and mixes the charm of Pride & Prejudice with contemporary romance would be right up my alley, but I fear this one tried to do too much too quickly for it to work.
Right off the bat, we get Zoe - a snarky romance loving reader obsessed with fictional men, who marches into a bookstore that she realizes does not sell any romance and STEALS a book from there, after the store owner, Nick, claims he does not believe in the concept of romance novels. Soon after, she realizes she has somehow managed to bring Mr. Darcy out of her favorite Austen novel. Zoe essentially lies to this poor man for nearly two whole weeks, gaslights him into thinking he is stuck in the real world forever and is in fact a real person, and refuses to let him go until they realize her beloved novel is at risk of disappearing.
My other major concern with this book was how it started off as magical realism but warped into something else in the last 1/3rd. We had characters jumping in and out of books, very little to none explanation of how these powers had happened or how they would work in the future, and unfortunately for me, started reading like fan fiction as opposed to a romance novel. Mr. Darcy's personality is a tricky to get right in a contemporary novel in the first place; and the fact that we got 10x more of him than the actual male protagonist was criminal in itself, without his personality being watered down and the awkward physical intimacy scenes between him and Zoe.
Honestly, Zoe's quirky landlady, Mrs. Atallah was the saving grace for this book for me.
Overall, I'm thankful for the chance to read an advanced copy of this book and quite liked the British setting, but will probably cautiously give the author's future works a try someday.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the gifted eARC of this book! All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I am a massive Pride and Prejudice fan. When I saw that Freya Sampson, an author I adore, wrote a book centered around Mr. Darcy coming to life, I about jumped for joy.
Mr. Darcy is a favorite romantic hero of mine. His character development in P&P so perfectly reveals his deeply loyal, generous and selfless nature beneath his proud and arrogant exterior. However, in this book, he is missing his shyness and charm. His reserved nature makes him so endearing in P&P, but he was much more talkative and strangely blunt in this book. (Yes, he is blunt in P&P, but it’s done differently.) Sampson's portrayal of Darcy and his dialogue weren't quite what I imagine of the character, but perhaps we all have different interpretations of what a 21st century Darcy would be like.
Freya Sampson usually writes such lovable, complex characters, but I failed to connect with this book's characters. They lacked depth and the dialogue felt awkward. The romance between Nick and Zoe felt rushed as there was very little build-up. It went from "enemies-to-love of my life" in very little time. I enjoyed the appearance of Dylan and Frank, though. (If you know, you know!) :)
Despite not connecting with the characters, I love the book's premise. How many of us wish we could spend an hour or two with our favorite fictional characters? Spending time with Mr. Darcy and traveling to the P&P world was a lot of fun. I did not expect to meet other P&P characters, so that was a nice surprise! I could feel Freya Sampson's love of P&P in her writing, and I really appreciate her preference for Colin Firth's Mr. Darcy. Same here! He is the BEST!
Even though this book fell flat for me in some aspects, I still love Freya Sampson's writing. I will always be first in line to buy one of her books, and I will definitely read this book again when it is published.
Mr. Darcy is a favorite romantic hero of mine. His character development in P&P so perfectly reveals his deeply loyal, generous and selfless nature beneath his proud and arrogant exterior. However, in this book, he is missing his shyness and charm. His reserved nature makes him so endearing in P&P, but he was much more talkative and strangely blunt in this book. (Yes, he is blunt in P&P, but it’s done differently.) Sampson's portrayal of Darcy and his dialogue weren't quite what I imagine of the character, but perhaps we all have different interpretations of what a 21st century Darcy would be like.
Freya Sampson usually writes such lovable, complex characters, but I failed to connect with this book's characters. They lacked depth and the dialogue felt awkward. The romance between Nick and Zoe felt rushed as there was very little build-up. It went from "enemies-to-love of my life" in very little time. I enjoyed the appearance of Dylan and Frank, though. (If you know, you know!) :)
Despite not connecting with the characters, I love the book's premise. How many of us wish we could spend an hour or two with our favorite fictional characters? Spending time with Mr. Darcy and traveling to the P&P world was a lot of fun. I did not expect to meet other P&P characters, so that was a nice surprise! I could feel Freya Sampson's love of P&P in her writing, and I really appreciate her preference for Colin Firth's Mr. Darcy. Same here! He is the BEST!
Even though this book fell flat for me in some aspects, I still love Freya Sampson's writing. I will always be first in line to buy one of her books, and I will definitely read this book again when it is published.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Most Ardently Yours is a charming, humorous romcom with a time-travel twist that will especially delight book lovers and Jane Austen fans. Packed with bookish references, wit, and heart, this story was an easy and enjoyable read that kept me turning the pages.
The story follows Zoe Knight, who has given up on her dream of becoming an author and is freshly heartbroken after being left by her ex. As a lifelong Pride and Prejudice superfan, she can hardly believe it when none other than Mr. Darcy suddenly appears in her world. But as the story unfolds, Zoe begins to question whether the “perfect man” from fiction would actually be perfect in real life.
The novel is written in a very visual, light, and humorous style, and I found it genuinely inspiring. I laughed a lot and enjoyed Zoe’s journey of self-discovery, identity, and self-worth. The central message that you don’t need someone else to save you, because you can be your own hero, is beautifully woven into the story.
While I loved Zoe as a protagonist and found her struggles relatable, I wished for a bit more emotional depth when it came to the romance. The MMC Noah, a grumpy bookseller, is a great contrast to Zoe’s hopeless-romantic personality, but he felt slightly underdeveloped. I would have loved more shared scenes and emotional build-up between them before they fell in love.
The pacing slows a little in the middle, but not enough to significantly impact my overall enjoyment. A personal highlight for me were the book club discussion questions at the end, such a lovely and thoughtful addition!
Overall, Most Ardently Yours is a witty, heartwarming romcom that celebrates books, self-growth, and the idea that perfection in fiction doesn’t always translate to real life. I highly recommend it to romcom readers, Jane Austen lovers, and anyone who dreams of having a bookboyfriend in real life!
The story follows Zoe Knight, who has given up on her dream of becoming an author and is freshly heartbroken after being left by her ex. As a lifelong Pride and Prejudice superfan, she can hardly believe it when none other than Mr. Darcy suddenly appears in her world. But as the story unfolds, Zoe begins to question whether the “perfect man” from fiction would actually be perfect in real life.
The novel is written in a very visual, light, and humorous style, and I found it genuinely inspiring. I laughed a lot and enjoyed Zoe’s journey of self-discovery, identity, and self-worth. The central message that you don’t need someone else to save you, because you can be your own hero, is beautifully woven into the story.
While I loved Zoe as a protagonist and found her struggles relatable, I wished for a bit more emotional depth when it came to the romance. The MMC Noah, a grumpy bookseller, is a great contrast to Zoe’s hopeless-romantic personality, but he felt slightly underdeveloped. I would have loved more shared scenes and emotional build-up between them before they fell in love.
The pacing slows a little in the middle, but not enough to significantly impact my overall enjoyment. A personal highlight for me were the book club discussion questions at the end, such a lovely and thoughtful addition!
Overall, Most Ardently Yours is a witty, heartwarming romcom that celebrates books, self-growth, and the idea that perfection in fiction doesn’t always translate to real life. I highly recommend it to romcom readers, Jane Austen lovers, and anyone who dreams of having a bookboyfriend in real life!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this ARC!
If you are looking for a fun, magical, original romance - and have always loved Pride and Prejudice - then this book is for you.
Most Ardently Yours is a book about a cynic, romance-hating, bookshop owner, a dazzling fictional book boyfriend and an inspiring romance author turned coffee shop worker. But most of all it's a story about self-confidence and wanting more from your life.
In this book we follow Zoe as she gets to live every book-lover's dream: meet her favorite fictional man. But as Mr. Darcy springs out of the book and straight into the 21st century, teaching him about modern technologies is not the only hardship she will face. When things go from bad to worse, Zoe discovers that real life can be better than a fictional one, and that heroines don't need knights in shinning armor, they can save themselves. Our main character, throughout the book, discovers that she is capable of much more than she thinks, that being honest is (mostly) a good idea, and that love always comes when we least expect it.
I enjoyed this book and thought the premise was really fun. I also loved the themes evoked throughout the story. Reading about Zoe growing into herself and falling in love with her life was really inspiring. However, the plot of the book, while magical, was a bit unbelievable at times. I also felt like the writing wasn't totally fleshed out and some parts were repetitive. There were a few paragraphs that felt like info-dumping, where the characters explained what was going on but in a stilted way that wasn't true to how someone would talk in real life.
All in all I wouldn't say that this was a great work of fiction but it was a fun, unserious time and did what, I believe, it set out to do.
If you are looking for a fun, magical, original romance - and have always loved Pride and Prejudice - then this book is for you.
Most Ardently Yours is a book about a cynic, romance-hating, bookshop owner, a dazzling fictional book boyfriend and an inspiring romance author turned coffee shop worker. But most of all it's a story about self-confidence and wanting more from your life.
In this book we follow Zoe as she gets to live every book-lover's dream: meet her favorite fictional man. But as Mr. Darcy springs out of the book and straight into the 21st century, teaching him about modern technologies is not the only hardship she will face. When things go from bad to worse, Zoe discovers that real life can be better than a fictional one, and that heroines don't need knights in shinning armor, they can save themselves. Our main character, throughout the book, discovers that she is capable of much more than she thinks, that being honest is (mostly) a good idea, and that love always comes when we least expect it.
I enjoyed this book and thought the premise was really fun. I also loved the themes evoked throughout the story. Reading about Zoe growing into herself and falling in love with her life was really inspiring. However, the plot of the book, while magical, was a bit unbelievable at times. I also felt like the writing wasn't totally fleshed out and some parts were repetitive. There were a few paragraphs that felt like info-dumping, where the characters explained what was going on but in a stilted way that wasn't true to how someone would talk in real life.
All in all I wouldn't say that this was a great work of fiction but it was a fun, unserious time and did what, I believe, it set out to do.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 ⭐ (rounded up)
I thought this was such a fun read! I mean, what book lover hasn’t daydreamed about bringing their favourite fictional character into the real world?
It has a really unusual genres: romance, romcom and magical realism. I absolutely loved the opening and found the humour really engaging. We dive straight into a discussion about "d*ck lit" books 😅, and there's a lot of references to fictional characters and "book boyfriends" from popular romance and fantasy romance books. I thought these actually worked well due to the storyline and the style of the book.
The story caught me off guard and didn't go how I thought it would go, which was a nice surprise!
The FMC and MMC had great chemistry, but I would have liked to have seen them spend more time together before the romance developed. I also thought character reactions were unrealistic at times, especially Mr Darcy's. Bringing such a well-established, iconic character like Mr Darcy into a totally different time and context is a bold move, and I think that might explain some of his underreactions or slightly odd behaviour. It could also be intentional since he is fictional within the book’s world, while the other characters are “real,” so maybe he was written to feel a little more two-dimensional or out of place to reflect that.
The ending didn’t quite work for me, especially the . While I understand the intention behind it (and the strong message of “be your own heroine” was prominent throughout the book), I still wish it had been handled a bit differently.
Overall, this was a fun and whimsical read with a lot of heart. There were just a few small things I wish had been done a little differently.
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this was such a fun read! I mean, what book lover hasn’t daydreamed about bringing their favourite fictional character into the real world?
It has a really unusual genres: romance, romcom and magical realism. I absolutely loved the opening and found the humour really engaging. We dive straight into a discussion about "d*ck lit" books 😅, and there's a lot of references to fictional characters and "book boyfriends" from popular romance and fantasy romance books. I thought these actually worked well due to the storyline and the style of the book.
The story caught me off guard and didn't go how I thought it would go, which was a nice surprise!
The FMC and MMC had great chemistry, but I would have liked to have seen them spend more time together before the romance developed. I also thought character reactions were unrealistic at times, especially Mr Darcy's. Bringing such a well-established, iconic character like Mr Darcy into a totally different time and context is a bold move, and I think that might explain some of his underreactions or slightly odd behaviour. It could also be intentional since he is fictional within the book’s world, while the other characters are “real,” so maybe he was written to feel a little more two-dimensional or out of place to reflect that.
The ending didn’t quite work for me, especially the . While I understand the intention behind it (and the strong message of “be your own heroine” was prominent throughout the book), I still wish it had been handled a bit differently.
Overall, this was a fun and whimsical read with a lot of heart. There were just a few small things I wish had been done a little differently.
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This was a fun time!
I loved how invested we are into the character and just how much they add wit and emotion into the story (especially Mrs. Atallah, she was a hoot!). We really see our main character, Zoe, grow as a person and as a writer as her friends and Mr. Darcy help her earn her trust in herself back. It was so uplifting seeing how much they cared for her and one another throughout the whole book.
And Nick!!! Sweetie pie Nick! The way we are initially put off by his character because he highly dislikes romance novels but then you realize that there is a reasoning behind that, and the reasoning is so sad and dare I say, traumatic. I mean, I too, would hate romance novels for that reason. But truth be told, loved how much he held Zoe in such high regard even after the events of their first encounter. Truly, a yearnful man.
That being said, lord have mercy were there so many references to current pop culture !! They 1000% could’ve been taken out since it truly dates every book in my opinion. Name dropping so many modern things almost felt like the author was trying to make the story as relevant as possible by naming as many possible BookTok references - making it a bit cringe. It felt like every other paragraph had a pop culture reference and it wasn’t until the last half of the book that it became more enjoyable to read because there was less attention to the pop culture aspect of it all. Genuinely do not need to hear about Love Island, Xaden Riorson (yes, from Fourth Wing…), or anything like that in a book - personally!
Thank you to Sourcebooks Publishing for the ARC.
I loved how invested we are into the character and just how much they add wit and emotion into the story (especially Mrs. Atallah, she was a hoot!). We really see our main character, Zoe, grow as a person and as a writer as her friends and Mr. Darcy help her earn her trust in herself back. It was so uplifting seeing how much they cared for her and one another throughout the whole book.
And Nick!!! Sweetie pie Nick! The way we are initially put off by his character because he highly dislikes romance novels but then you realize that there is a reasoning behind that, and the reasoning is so sad and dare I say, traumatic. I mean, I too, would hate romance novels for that reason. But truth be told, loved how much he held Zoe in such high regard even after the events of their first encounter. Truly, a yearnful man.
That being said, lord have mercy were there so many references to current pop culture !! They 1000% could’ve been taken out since it truly dates every book in my opinion. Name dropping so many modern things almost felt like the author was trying to make the story as relevant as possible by naming as many possible BookTok references - making it a bit cringe. It felt like every other paragraph had a pop culture reference and it wasn’t until the last half of the book that it became more enjoyable to read because there was less attention to the pop culture aspect of it all. Genuinely do not need to hear about Love Island, Xaden Riorson (yes, from Fourth Wing…), or anything like that in a book - personally!
Thank you to Sourcebooks Publishing for the ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I saw the cover art, saw the author's first name, and assumed this was a new book by Freya Marske. (It's not.) I definitely wouldn't have read this had I been paying attention-- I'm not a Jane Austen fanatic and generally avoid retellings like this and Pride and Preston Lin.
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I'm familiar with the necessary Austen background works from other media. Readers with even less exposure than me might want to at least read the wikipedia summary; it seemed like there was a lot of Austen-tatious detail included with intentionality throughout the book, but I'm sure I missed quite a bit of it.
There were a few things that didn't make sense and that affected the book's believability. For example, it's repeatedly emphasized how honest Darcy is, but he's pretty happy to tell fibs and operate under a cover story when out in public. I don't know his character well from the original work, but it's very inconsistent within this book.
The magic elements aren't really explained ever. There's enough zaniness to misdirect, and a quick, vague explanation that papers over the great hole in the paranormal universe, but I'm unsatisfied. World-building needs improvement.
Suggest this to romance readers and self-identified Austen fans looking for airplane-type reads.
eARC from NetGalley.
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I'm familiar with the necessary Austen background works from other media. Readers with even less exposure than me might want to at least read the wikipedia summary; it seemed like there was a lot of Austen-tatious detail included with intentionality throughout the book, but I'm sure I missed quite a bit of it.
There were a few things that didn't make sense and that affected the book's believability. For example, it's repeatedly emphasized how honest Darcy is, but he's pretty happy to tell fibs and operate under a cover story when out in public. I don't know his character well from the original work, but it's very inconsistent within this book.
The magic elements aren't really explained ever. There's enough zaniness to misdirect, and a quick, vague explanation that papers over the great hole in the paranormal universe, but I'm unsatisfied. World-building needs improvement.
Suggest this to romance readers and self-identified Austen fans looking for airplane-type reads.
eARC from NetGalley.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The moment I received this ARC, I knew it was going to be my first read of the year. Freya Sampson's books, for me, are always very wholesome, very charming, and very warm. They're always about a group of people who have little in common but come together to tackle a problem or solve a mystery, and there's something comforting about that. And since I said I wanted to be kinder to myself this year, what better way to start that but with a Freya Sampson book.
This is a slight departure from her previous novels, simply in the fantastical element of the book. I mean, Mr. Darcy being read out of a book, plucked from Regency England into modern day? So fantastical! And so every romance girlie's dream.
I love that we follow Zoe through this whole journey. Had Mr. Darcy's sudden materialization happened to someone like Nick, it wouldn't have worked. We needed to stand alongside someone who loves romance books as much as we do, who uses "book boyfriend" liberally, who understands what Mr. Darcy's appearance would mean, and Zoe does. She's the perfect heroine for this to happen to.
I actually took very few notes while reading this book that weren't fangirling; I was so engrossed in it that I found little to note for scrutiny. I loved the twist that reminded me a bit of Ant-Man and the Wasp, I fangirled hard at the Dylan and Frank cameo, and the supporting friend group continues to be ride-or-die awesome.
And Miss Sampson, why did you have to make me tear up with that dedication?
The moment I received this ARC, I knew it was going to be my first read of the year. Freya Sampson's books, for me, are always very wholesome, very charming, and very warm. They're always about a group of people who have little in common but come together to tackle a problem or solve a mystery, and there's something comforting about that. And since I said I wanted to be kinder to myself this year, what better way to start that but with a Freya Sampson book.
This is a slight departure from her previous novels, simply in the fantastical element of the book. I mean, Mr. Darcy being read out of a book, plucked from Regency England into modern day? So fantastical! And so every romance girlie's dream.
I love that we follow Zoe through this whole journey. Had Mr. Darcy's sudden materialization happened to someone like Nick, it wouldn't have worked. We needed to stand alongside someone who loves romance books as much as we do, who uses "book boyfriend" liberally, who understands what Mr. Darcy's appearance would mean, and Zoe does. She's the perfect heroine for this to happen to.
I actually took very few notes while reading this book that weren't fangirling; I was so engrossed in it that I found little to note for scrutiny. I loved the twist that reminded me a bit of Ant-Man and the Wasp, I fangirled hard at the Dylan and Frank cameo, and the supporting friend group continues to be ride-or-die awesome.
And Miss Sampson, why did you have to make me tear up with that dedication?
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
As a fan of the movies Kate & Leopold and Lost in Austen, and the book Pride and Prejudice, this book sounded like a fun British rom-com by a new-to-me author.
What I liked: I liked the setting of the bookshop, the scene locations around London and England, and I believe Nick was a solid MMC. I enjoyed the interactions between FMC Zoe and Nick, and there was good tension in their meet-cute.
What I didn't like: I found the magic in the book to be unbelievable. I like magical realism, but the last 1/3rd of the book was ridiculous and it took me out of the story. I also felt like Darcy's personality was one-dimensional and I couldn't really get to know him as a character. The sexual references were over-the-top in frequency and cringy.
Overall impression: This was a zany adult rom-com for fans of Pride and Prejudice and other popular romance novels, but for me it lacked depth and believability and had too many sexual references.
Content Considerations: Moderate frequency of strong profanity (f--), many sexual references and innuendoes, one fade to black scene with some mild to moderate description, one other inference of intimacy occurring, one bi-sexual side character (implied, not explicit), several mentions of same-sex side characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the complementary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. My review is my own opinion and is in no way influenced by the author or publisher.
What I liked: I liked the setting of the bookshop, the scene locations around London and England, and I believe Nick was a solid MMC. I enjoyed the interactions between FMC Zoe and Nick, and there was good tension in their meet-cute.
What I didn't like: I found the magic in the book to be unbelievable. I like magical realism, but the last 1/3rd of the book was ridiculous and it took me out of the story. I also felt like Darcy's personality was one-dimensional and I couldn't really get to know him as a character. The sexual references were over-the-top in frequency and cringy.
Overall impression: This was a zany adult rom-com for fans of Pride and Prejudice and other popular romance novels, but for me it lacked depth and believability and had too many sexual references.
Content Considerations: Moderate frequency of strong profanity (f--), many sexual references and innuendoes, one fade to black scene with some mild to moderate description, one other inference of intimacy occurring, one bi-sexual side character (implied, not explicit), several mentions of same-sex side characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the complementary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. My review is my own opinion and is in no way influenced by the author or publisher.
February 20, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.
2.5⭐️
Most Ardently Yours follows Zoe, who is an aspiring author and avid reader who one day meets her dream book boyfriend - Darcy Fitzwilliams from Pride and Prejudice. Zoe is determined to keep him - but when Nick, the owner of Baskerville Books finds out what has happened, Zoe realizes she’s in a lot more trouble then she thought.
This book was interesting. Magical Realism can be a hit or miss for me in a book, and unfortunately I would have to say this one was a miss. I get the overall picture of the book I just felt like it was too far from realism. I personally just wasn’t a fan of how all of her friends didn’t really question her when she told the truth about Darcy - I feel like there should have been more detail about that part.
I will also add I really wasn’t a fan of the main character, Zoe. I found her to be a bit annoying and just so similar to every other character who is a book lover and wants to be author. It’s always the same - someone tells her she’s not good enough and then she stops writing, u till she falls in love and then they tell her she’s good. It just feels like is so similar to other stories.
The story had some interesting parts and well thought out pieces, but it just felt like something was missing to me. I think if Zoe was maybe more different than so many other characters and had a bit more unique take on herself and her writing it would have made the book stand out more.
2.5⭐️
Most Ardently Yours follows Zoe, who is an aspiring author and avid reader who one day meets her dream book boyfriend - Darcy Fitzwilliams from Pride and Prejudice. Zoe is determined to keep him - but when Nick, the owner of Baskerville Books finds out what has happened, Zoe realizes she’s in a lot more trouble then she thought.
This book was interesting. Magical Realism can be a hit or miss for me in a book, and unfortunately I would have to say this one was a miss. I get the overall picture of the book I just felt like it was too far from realism. I personally just wasn’t a fan of how all of her friends didn’t really question her when she told the truth about Darcy - I feel like there should have been more detail about that part.
I will also add I really wasn’t a fan of the main character, Zoe. I found her to be a bit annoying and just so similar to every other character who is a book lover and wants to be author. It’s always the same - someone tells her she’s not good enough and then she stops writing, u till she falls in love and then they tell her she’s good. It just feels like is so similar to other stories.
The story had some interesting parts and well thought out pieces, but it just felt like something was missing to me. I think if Zoe was maybe more different than so many other characters and had a bit more unique take on herself and her writing it would have made the book stand out more.
January 27, 2026
So, apparently book magic books are now a thing and I love them very much. (See also The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer coming this year.)
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single woman in possession of many romance novels, must be in want of a book boyfriend.” …and, I’m hooked.
Zoe Knight escapes from a downpour into Baskerville Books, which used to be known for its romance selection but is now known for its lack thereof. She argues with the owner about this, and when she spies a copy of Pride and Prejudice, she steals it and runs. On the bus home she reads about her book boyfriend, Mr. Darcy (duh!), and the next day the actual Mr. Darcy walks into the cafe where she works.
“But for this brief moment, I allowed myself to revel in the fact that the character I had loved since I was 14 – the gorgeous, honest, loyal man who had set the bar for all other men I’ve ever met– was here in my flat as warm-blooded and real as I was. and then I went into my bedroom and barricaded the door shut in case he tried to murder me in the night.”
I feel like trying to explain more is spoilery, but if you love romance and pretty much anything to do with Jane Austen, this book is for you.
Many, many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced copy. These opinions are my own.
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single woman in possession of many romance novels, must be in want of a book boyfriend.” …and, I’m hooked.
Zoe Knight escapes from a downpour into Baskerville Books, which used to be known for its romance selection but is now known for its lack thereof. She argues with the owner about this, and when she spies a copy of Pride and Prejudice, she steals it and runs. On the bus home she reads about her book boyfriend, Mr. Darcy (duh!), and the next day the actual Mr. Darcy walks into the cafe where she works.
“But for this brief moment, I allowed myself to revel in the fact that the character I had loved since I was 14 – the gorgeous, honest, loyal man who had set the bar for all other men I’ve ever met– was here in my flat as warm-blooded and real as I was. and then I went into my bedroom and barricaded the door shut in case he tried to murder me in the night.”
I feel like trying to explain more is spoilery, but if you love romance and pretty much anything to do with Jane Austen, this book is for you.
Many, many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced copy. These opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I've read and enjoyed several of Freya Sampson's other books, so I was looking forward to reading Most Ardently Yours. Zoe Knight prefers book boyfriends to real life men. Book boyfriends don't disappoint and don't break your heart. She escapes a rainstorm by wandering into Baskerville Books, a store she's never entered due to it catering to "dick lit" (books marketed for men). Zoe meets Nick, the owner, who informs her that he doesn't sell romance novels. Zoe finds an old copy of Pride and Prejudice on a shelf and liberates it from the store. While reading it, Zoe somehow conjures up Mr. Darcy, the ultimate book boyfriend. Zoe is expecting Mr. Darcy to be as dashing in person as he is in Pride and Prejudice, but things don't quite work that way as Mr. Darcy experiences 2026. Zoe and Darcy run into Nick at a party and Nick tells Zoe that Darcy has to go back into his book. Zoe refuses to listen and quickly learns the ramifications of keeping him in present time.
The plot is cute and a little ridiculous yet charming in that magical/time traveling way. The characters are loveable and funny, especially Darcy as he navigates modern conveniences. Zoe's neighbor/landlady, Mrs. Atallah, provides a lot of comic relief as well. It's a quick, lighthearted read.
Thank you, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark, for this ARC.
The plot is cute and a little ridiculous yet charming in that magical/time traveling way. The characters are loveable and funny, especially Darcy as he navigates modern conveniences. Zoe's neighbor/landlady, Mrs. Atallah, provides a lot of comic relief as well. It's a quick, lighthearted read.
Thank you, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark, for this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Indeed, the world is a total bin fire, I can assuredly say so even though it would have been nice if it was otherwise. But this is why I adore books about being good enough – for which I have a special shelf on Goodreads – like this one to remind us to feel really fucking good about ourselves even (or especially) if that doesn’t come easy in this cold world.
Who doesn’t feel broken or as if something might be wrong with them? Yup, who dares to admit that nowadays? There will always be people who put you down or abandon you. I am not saying it is easy to pick yourself up after that, but in most cases you can… no matter how long it takes, that is fine too.
Lots of wise words from Most Ardently Yours, but as I have been given an ARC I am not supposed to share these, there is only one solution: to read the book yourself :) And enjoy all the details that made this such a lovely book, such as Nonna coming from Sicily to berate Enzo’s parents for reacting badly when he came out. But you'll start at the page with the author cheering you on if you indeed are someone who worries about being worthy, a very upbeat beginning of this book!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.
Who doesn’t feel broken or as if something might be wrong with them? Yup, who dares to admit that nowadays? There will always be people who put you down or abandon you. I am not saying it is easy to pick yourself up after that, but in most cases you can… no matter how long it takes, that is fine too.
Lots of wise words from Most Ardently Yours, but as I have been given an ARC I am not supposed to share these, there is only one solution: to read the book yourself :) And enjoy all the details that made this such a lovely book, such as Nonna coming from Sicily to berate Enzo’s parents for reacting badly when he came out. But you'll start at the page with the author cheering you on if you indeed are someone who worries about being worthy, a very upbeat beginning of this book!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ ARC Review ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚
📖: Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
✩ NA, enemies-to-lovers, portal fantasy, self discovery, grief, forced proximity, book boyfriend comes to life ✩
My Rating: 3/✩✩✩✩✩
spice: 1/5
Thank you to the NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Most Ardently Yours follows romance-obsessed Zoe Knight who, after accidentally summoning the real Mr. Darcy from a stolen copy of Pride and Prejudice, must find a way to send him back to the pages of her favourite book with the help of a romance-sceptic bookseller, Nick.
Freya Sampson definitely knows how to hook a romance reader! Most Ardently Yours is a love letter to the "book boyfriend" trope. Watching Zoe navigate the real world with a literal Regency hero was delightful.
While the concept is brilliant, the execution struggled with pacing issues that made the story feel longer than necessary.
The tension felt repetitive rather than building toward a climax. I also found the "I loved you from the start" reveal a bit disappointing—I’m a firm believer that the best enemies-to-lovers stories require a genuine change of heart! It’s a 3-star read for me: charming and imaginative, but I’m looking for more "oomph" in the final polish!✨️
📖: Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
✩ NA, enemies-to-lovers, portal fantasy, self discovery, grief, forced proximity, book boyfriend comes to life ✩
My Rating: 3/✩✩✩✩✩
spice: 1/5
Thank you to the NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Most Ardently Yours follows romance-obsessed Zoe Knight who, after accidentally summoning the real Mr. Darcy from a stolen copy of Pride and Prejudice, must find a way to send him back to the pages of her favourite book with the help of a romance-sceptic bookseller, Nick.
Freya Sampson definitely knows how to hook a romance reader! Most Ardently Yours is a love letter to the "book boyfriend" trope. Watching Zoe navigate the real world with a literal Regency hero was delightful.
While the concept is brilliant, the execution struggled with pacing issues that made the story feel longer than necessary.
The tension felt repetitive rather than building toward a climax. I also found the "I loved you from the start" reveal a bit disappointing—I’m a firm believer that the best enemies-to-lovers stories require a genuine change of heart! It’s a 3-star read for me: charming and imaginative, but I’m looking for more "oomph" in the final polish!✨️
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
So I have only read one other Freya Sampson book and this one was completely different. This was a carefree, silly, quirky, romance novel that 100% does not take itself seriously and does not care if you like it or not.
Okay, so surprisingly this is not my first book that has to do with regency time travel in the last 6 months, also not my first book that deals with books/fictional characters and time travel for that matter.
Zoe accidentally summons Mr. Darcy from an old copy of Pride and Prejudice and so the story unfolds. Is there also a romance storyline with a real character? Yes. Does that romance mimic Pride and Prejudice? Why, yes... yes it does. The story starts off really great and funny and eventually it just loses steam and about 3/4 of the way through it felt like it had its ending and then more things got added and I felt like it took away from the story and I was ready for it to wrap up.
There are parts of this that are extremely witty but does it outweigh the sheer silliness? I don't know. I think if you go into this with neutral expectations then you will think it is cute.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Okay, so surprisingly this is not my first book that has to do with regency time travel in the last 6 months, also not my first book that deals with books/fictional characters and time travel for that matter.
Zoe accidentally summons Mr. Darcy from an old copy of Pride and Prejudice and so the story unfolds. Is there also a romance storyline with a real character? Yes. Does that romance mimic Pride and Prejudice? Why, yes... yes it does. The story starts off really great and funny and eventually it just loses steam and about 3/4 of the way through it felt like it had its ending and then more things got added and I felt like it took away from the story and I was ready for it to wrap up.
There are parts of this that are extremely witty but does it outweigh the sheer silliness? I don't know. I think if you go into this with neutral expectations then you will think it is cute.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
January 22, 2026
I will start off by saying that I think many people would enjoy this book. It has a lot going for it. Sharp, clever writing. Dry, punchy humor. Fun conversational banter.
I’ve read books in this lane (time travel; book related magic; Jane Austen spinoff), and I thought this one was pretty well done in comparison. There were twists and turns and storyline choices that felt unique and original.
All that said, a couple of constructive critiques include:
The pacing (especially towards the ending) was a little surprising, leaning towards unbalanced. I thought it would end about three separate times, but it continued on at each point. On one hand, I appreciate that it felt unpredictable and not “cookie cutter.” On the other, it felt slightly messy and almost like the story was unraveling. This was probably due to the fact that it all happened within the last quarter of the book, and that we didn’t get a lot of time to adjust or live longer within the sudden scene changes.
While I do appreciate what the author attempted with Darcy’s character, I don’t know that I ever felt fully convinced by him. I like that she didn’t take him too seriously and made some playful choices with his role in Zoe’s life, but it also made it hard to really believe in him completely.
Overall, it’s a solid choice of a book for someone looking for a niche, light-hearted, Austen-adjacent contemporary novel.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC.
I’ve read books in this lane (time travel; book related magic; Jane Austen spinoff), and I thought this one was pretty well done in comparison. There were twists and turns and storyline choices that felt unique and original.
All that said, a couple of constructive critiques include:
The pacing (especially towards the ending) was a little surprising, leaning towards unbalanced. I thought it would end about three separate times, but it continued on at each point. On one hand, I appreciate that it felt unpredictable and not “cookie cutter.” On the other, it felt slightly messy and almost like the story was unraveling. This was probably due to the fact that it all happened within the last quarter of the book, and that we didn’t get a lot of time to adjust or live longer within the sudden scene changes.
While I do appreciate what the author attempted with Darcy’s character, I don’t know that I ever felt fully convinced by him. I like that she didn’t take him too seriously and made some playful choices with his role in Zoe’s life, but it also made it hard to really believe in him completely.
Overall, it’s a solid choice of a book for someone looking for a niche, light-hearted, Austen-adjacent contemporary novel.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you, NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS, for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!
I am a top Pride and Prejudice fan. It is one of my favorite stories ever written, and I love it in all formats, so when I saw Most Ardently Yours, a book about Mr. Darcy coming to life in the real world, I had to request a copy. With that said, this book fell flat for me in a lot of areas, but shined in others.
Part of what I love about Darcy is his natural reservation that hides the soft, strong, and yearning interior. I feel like we lost a lot of that in this book, which, to be fair, isn't the actual work of Jane Austen. What I found to be true of Darcy, though, was more his gruffness rather than his simple awkwardness and shyness. While this was a comedy through and through, it was maybe a little too silly for me, and that's okay. I didn't adore Zoe's flightiness or her being unwilling to be honest from the get go, but I love magical realism and a good enemies-to-lovers trope, regardless, so there were still some parts that still took hold in my heart throughout the story anyway.
I feel like this will resonate with fans of Kate & Leopold more than anything else.
I am a top Pride and Prejudice fan. It is one of my favorite stories ever written, and I love it in all formats, so when I saw Most Ardently Yours, a book about Mr. Darcy coming to life in the real world, I had to request a copy. With that said, this book fell flat for me in a lot of areas, but shined in others.
Part of what I love about Darcy is his natural reservation that hides the soft, strong, and yearning interior. I feel like we lost a lot of that in this book, which, to be fair, isn't the actual work of Jane Austen. What I found to be true of Darcy, though, was more his gruffness rather than his simple awkwardness and shyness. While this was a comedy through and through, it was maybe a little too silly for me, and that's okay. I didn't adore Zoe's flightiness or her being unwilling to be honest from the get go, but I love magical realism and a good enemies-to-lovers trope, regardless, so there were still some parts that still took hold in my heart throughout the story anyway.
I feel like this will resonate with fans of Kate & Leopold more than anything else.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Like a good book boyfriend, Freya Sampson doesn't disappoint! this book was so fun! I loved the character of Zoe, and how she works at a literary themed cafe! She was so relatable with her love of romance novels, and especially Pride and Prejudice. It was so fun to hear so many names and characters that were so familiar! Right off the bat, her relationship with Nick starts out very Pride and Prejudice like, with not great first impressions, immediate annoyance (who doesn't like romance books?!) and the vibes were definitely tense! I loved her best friend, Bianca, Darcy (obviously) but also Mrs. Attallah, who absolutely killed me with her love of Drag race and had Mr. Darcy watching Love Island! This book has so much book magic, and without any spoilers, there was at least two twists that I did NOT see coming more than halfway through! I love Freya Sampson's books, and loved how there was even a nod to Frank and Dylan from her book The Lost Ticket during a scene when Zoe and Mr. Darcy are on a London double decker bus. It made my heart so happy! I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who loves romance stories but also has ever wanted to "Get lost in a book"......
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